9 more warehouse fire victims identified

Tuesday night the Alameda County coroner’s bureau has identified nine additional victims of Friday night’s three-alarm fire that took 36 lives during a party at the Ghost Ship warehouse space in Oakland.

Oakland residents Billy Dixon, 35, Johnny Igaz, 34, Ara Jo, 29, Vanessa Plotkin, 21, and Nicole Siegrist, 29, have all been confirmed to have been killed in the fire and their families have been notified, according to the coroner.

Amanda Kershaw, a 34-year-old San Francisco resident, 23-year-old Griffin Madden from Berkeley, 22-year-old Alex Vega from San Bruno and 32-year-old Hanna Ruax from Helsinki, Finland, have also been confirmed dead.

Other victims that have been previously identified by the coroner include Oakland residents Cash Askew, Em Bohlka, David Cline, Micah Danemayer, Alex Ghassan, Travis Hough, Donna Kellogg, Edmond Lapine, Benjamin Runnels and Jennifer Kiyomi Tanouye.

Chelsea Dolan of San Francisco, Nick Gomez-Hall of Coronado, Michela Gregory of South San Francisco, Sara Hoda of Walnut Creek, Jennifer Morris of Foster City, Riley Fritz of Berkeley and Brandon Chase Wittenauer of Hayward have also been officially identified.

While first responders have not completed their search of the building, previous preliminary searches, including using trained dogs, indicate that there may not be any more victims found. While most of the 36 victims have at least been tentatively identified, some will require scientific identification so their names might not be officially confirmed for some time.

The three-alarm fire broke out during a performance of Golden Donna 100% Silk 2016 West Coast Tour. Interior photos showed a makeshift second floor in the building with wood nailed all around it and numerous items decorating the inside.

Firefighters said attendees had difficulty finding their way out of the space, either because of the crowded interior or narrow staircase from the second floor. The fire may have started with a refrigerator, according to investigators.